Local History 2 Photos 2018
13th December 2018
A performance by Jane Glennie entitled 'How do you takes yours?'
For our last meeting of the year we were wonderfully entertained by Jane Glennie, a.k.a Mrs Cox. Mrs Cox enlightened us as to the correct way to make the perfect cup of tea, the correct way to drink it, and whether one should pour the milk in first or last! She also gave us some of the history of tea, the high taxes it incurred in the 1700's, smuggling, high-jacking and even poisoning just so people could get hold of the valuable commodity. Our thanks to Jane for her splendid performance,, also thanks to all who joined in our Christmas Tea and for bringing festive fayre for us all to enjoy.
Wishing you all a Very Happy 2019.
15th November 2018
History of Portsmouth (part 2) Talk by Andrew Negus
It was another lively and humorous talk from Andrew as we ambled our way through the history of Portsmouth up to around the 1870's. So much history packed into such a small city! We look forward to part three sometime in the near future.
18th October 2018
What's in a Name? Talk by Madeleine Salvetti
Our thanks to Madeleine for a fascinating talk about the street names in and around Portsmouth. Our highways and byways are named after famous people, historical events, royalty and some are even named after the children of the builders who developed an area. I'm sure none of us will walk along any road again without wondering the origin of it's name.
20th September 2018
Guided tour of Southampton Tudor House and Garden
Tudor House reveals over 800 years of history in one fascinating location at the heart of the Old Town. The timber-framed building facing St. Michael's Square was built in the late 15th Century, with King John's Palace, an adjacent Norman house accessible from Tudor House Garden, dating back a further 300 years. After our tour around the house we walked down the road to an even older building, The Duke of Wellington Pub, which was originally built in 1220 where we enjoyed an excellent Afternoon Tea.
16th August 2018
Guided tour of Avington Park
Avington Park is a privately owned stately home set in its own parkland bordering the River Itchen. It was mentioned as far back as the 10th Century and originally belonged to Winchester Cathedral until Henry Vlll granted the estate to Edmund Clerke. In the mid 17th Century Avington was owned by George Brydges, Groom of the Bedchamber to Charles ll. He enlarged the house to accommodate the King and Nell Gwynne and the house also played host to George Vl and Mrs Fitzhertbert. After a fascinating tour around the house and grounds tea was enjoyed in the conservatory.
July 19th 2018
A gentle stroll around Alverstoke with Terry Hinkley
Our tour of Alverstoke with Terry Hinkley proved fascinating. We learnt about the ancient church site at the head of the Creek, the Spanish Queen resident, the old port links with France and the later defences against the threat of French invasion. After a cooling walk around the Creek we entered the Haslar Royal Naval Cemetery which contains burials from service personnel in the First and Second World Wars. This includes a collective grave to 42 officers and men of HM Submarine L55 brought back from the Baltic in 1928, a monument to the HMS Eurydice disaster in 1878 and a Turkish Naval Cemetery of 1850. Our walk finished in the charming garden of the elegant Crescent built by the entrepreneur Robert Cruikshank to a Jacob Owen design in 1830 as an attempt to create a fashionable resort named Anglesey Ville. Our welcome tea and delicious cakes in the Anglesey Hotel gave us a taste of gracious living of the time.
21st June 2018
Titchfield guided walk with Mary Reed
Led by Mary, we all enjoyed a gentle stroll around the charming village of Titchfield. There has been a thriving community here for about 1400 years and as we wandered around we had a real sense of it's history. After finding the wall built of bones (sheep), we went to the Queen's Head for afternoon Tea.
17th May 2018
A guided Tour of Eades House with Hilly Sloan
We began with tea in a very grand dining room followed by Hilly Sloan giving a fascinating insight into the house, the people who lived there and life in Chichester in the 17th Century. Her tour is full of anecdotes to liven proceedings including the origin of martlets, and a possible interpretation of the nursery rhyme "Jack and Jill" based on the huge brass measures used at the time and on display in the fireplace.
26th April 2018
Guided tour of Portsmouth Anglican Cathedral
Aptly named, The Cathedral of the Sea, we were given a wonderful guided tour of this amazing building. It was built in about 1180 as a Parish Church and become a Cathedral in 1927 with much fascinating history in between. Some of our members enjoyed the lunch-time Recital before our tour began and we all very much enjoyed the Tea afterwards. For more information go to www.portsmouthcathedral.org.uk
15th March 2018
Talk by Dr Frances Hurd - Churches in Hampshire
Our thanks to Dr Frances Hurd for her illustrated talk on the work of the Churches Conservation Trust. The Trust is a national charity protecting historic churches which are at risk, some dating back to the 12th and 13th century. There are several ancient churches in Hampshire worth a visit. For further information visit their website www.visitchurches.org.uk
15th February 2018
Talk by Mary Reed on the History of Titchfield
An enjoyable gathering which should prepare us for a guided stroll of the village in June.
18th January 2018
Talk by Andrew Negus 'Portsmouth - Harlots, Dung and Glory' Part 1.
We all thoroughly enjoyed Andrew's talk. Portsmouth came alive with his description of historical facts from around 1100 - 1790. In the not too distant future hopefully Andrew will be back to give us 'Part 2'.
